June 2012
Genetic variability of camel (Camelus dromedarius) populations in Saudi Arabia based on microsatellites analysis
The genetic diversity and population genetic structure of dromedary camels (Camelus dromedarius) are poorly documented in Saudi Arabia. The present study was conducted to address some of these genetics using four Saudi Arabian camel populations namely; Magaheem (MG), Maghateer (MJ), Sofr (SO) and Shual (SH). Genomic DNA was extracted from the hair roots of 160 camels, 40 individuals from each population. Sixteen...
June 2012
Quantification of Bt δ-endotoxins in leaf tissues of tropical Bt maize populations
In Kenya, stem borers destroy an estimated 13.5% of farmers' annual maize harvest. Maize transformed using Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) derived genes controls stem borers without negative effects to humans, livestock or the environment. The effectiveness and sustainability of Bt transgenic technology in the control of stem borers depends on the levels of concentration of the Bt δ-endotoxins in plant tissues....
June 2012
Screening and cloning of differentially expressed genes in Dendrobium nobile induced by orchid mycorrhizal fungus promoting the growth
Appropriate mycorrhizal fungi could effectively promote plant growth and development. Our previous research results showed that the growth of Dendrobium nobile was obviously promoted under inoculating one orchid mycorrhizal fungi, Epulorhiza sp. AR-18. To understand the growth-promoting molecular mechanisms, differential displayed real time polymerase chain reaction (DDRT-PCR), reverse Northern blot...
June 2012
Rubisco-bis-phosphate oxygenase (RuBP)- A potential housekeeping gene for qPCR assays in tea
The present experiment is an effort to find a stable reference gene in Camellia sinensisand Camellia assamica under different biotic and abiotic stresses. This study evaluatethe variation in gene expression across tea leaf tissues in nine experiments. The suitability of 18S rRNA, 26S rRNA, rubisco-bis-phosphatase oxygenase (RuBP) andCamellia tubulin (CaT) as...
June 2012
Regulation of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) fruit setting and earliness by gibberellic acid and 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid application
The experiment was conducted with the objective of determining the effects of different concentrations and combinations of the plant growth regulators (PGRs) 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and gibberellic acid (GA3) spray on fruit setting and earliness of tomato varieties. The experiment consisted of one processing (Roma VF) and one fresh market (Fetan), tomato varieties, three levels of 2,4-D (0, 5 and 10 ppm)...
June 2012
Polymorphism at selected defence gene analogs (DGAs) of Musa accessions in Mauritius
One of the major diseases affecting banana is Sigatoka or leaf spot disease that comprises three species, Mycosphaerella fijiensis, Mycosphaerella musicola and Mycosphaerella eumusae. Plants have a large number of defence related genes which trigger a cascade of defense responses that halt the spread of pathogens. Knowledge of the diversity present in genes related to the defense against Sigatoka disease will...
June 2012
Isolation of AhDHNs from Arachis hypogaea L. and evaluation of AhDHNs expression under exogenous abscisic acid (ABA) and water stress
The peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is an important oil and cash crop all over the world. It is mostly planted in arid and semi-arid regions. To determine the mechanism by which dehydrins (DHNs) are regulated by abscisic acid (ABA) in peanuts, three Arachis hypogaea L. dehydrins (AhDHNs) were isolated from peanut plants and sequenced. By blasting the protein sequences of...
June 2012
Improving adventitious shoot regeneration from cultured leaf explants of Petunia hybrida using thidiazuron
The effect of various concentrations of thidiazuron (TDZ) with or without 2.7 μM of α-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) on adventitious shoot formation of two Petunia hybridacultivars was studied. Seeds from ‘Daddy Blue’ and ‘Dreams White’ cultivars were germinated in vitro. Expanded leaves from both seedlings and regenerated shoots were taken as explants. Explants were placed on...
June 2012
Bacteriological investigation of ground water sources in selected urban areas of district Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Microbial contamination of ground water sources is a common problem in all the big cities, which endangers health and impairs quality of living . To assess this, 39 water samples were collected from highly populated 13 union councils from the urban area of district Mardan. Faecal coliform and Escherichia coli were investigated both qualitatively and quantitatively. Qualitative study showed...
June 2012
Medium component improvement for β-galactosidase production by a probiotic strain Lactobacillus fermentum CM33
Plackett and Burman statistical design was applied to screen the nutritional factors affecting β-galactosidase production by Lactobacillus fermentum CM33. Accordingly, lactose, tryptone and Tween80 were found to be the positive effective factors at the significant level above 80%. Central composite design (CCD) and response surface plot predicted that the maximum enzyme activity of 49.81 U/100 ml would be...
June 2012
Isolation and characterization of a new mucoid-free Klebsiella pneumoniae strain for 2,3-butanediol production
The secretion of mucoid substances by Klebsiella pneumoniae, a natural 2,3-butanediol (2,3-BD) hyper-producer, hinders its application in large-scale fermentation because of pathogenicity, fermentation instability, and downstream difficulty. In this study, 14 K. pneumoniae strains were isolated from a waste water treatment plant and their 2,3-BD production efficiencies were assessed with the...
June 2012
Chemical, physical, microbiological and quality attributes studies on River Nile crayfish
In Egypt, red crayfish has become an important new food source, a cheap and popular source of aquatic food, replacing the expensive marine crustaceans. Chemical, physical, microbiological and quality attributes of red crayfish samples were determined. Results show that total weight of inedible parts was 84.64% of the live weight. Value of raw fresh crayfish yield was higher than that boiled. Cooking loss tail meat for...
June 2012
Interactions between Lactobacillus acidophilus strains and the starter cultures, Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus during fermentation of goats’ milk
It has been observed that Lactobacillus acidophilus has poor survivability in fermented goats’ milk. In this study, interactions between L. acidophilus and starter cultures during goats’ milk fermentation were investigated using three strains of L. acidophilus: ATCC-11975, LA-5 and NCFM, and the starter cultures (Lactobacillus delbrueckiisubsp. bulgaricus (LB350)...
June 2012
Effect of sorbic acid and some other food preservatives on human serum cholinesterase activity
The effect of some selected food preservatives on serum cholinesterase was determined. It was found that potassium metabisulphite, methyl parabene and propyl parabene caused a significant increase while sacharine, benzoic acid, salicylic acid, copper carbonate and sorbic acid caused a significant decrease in cholinesterase activity. The behavior of serum cholinesterase activity in response to a gradual change in the...
June 2012
A gene expression study on strains of Nostoc (Cyanobacteria) revealing antimicrobial activity under mixotrophic conditions
Cyanobacteria are well known for their production of a multitude of highly allelopathic compounds. These products have features such as incorporation of non-proteinogenic amino acids which are characteristics of peptides biosynthesized by non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs). Some of these peptides have acetate-derived moieties, suggesting that their biosynthesis also involves polyketide synthases (PKSs). Among the...
June 2012
Modelling the spread of HIV/AIDS epidemic in the presence of irresponsible infectives
In this study, a non-linear mathematical model was proposed and analyzed to study the effect of irresponsible infectives in the spread of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in a variable size population. The population was divided into four subclasses, of susceptibles (HIV negatives who can contract the disease), irresponsible infectives (people who are infected...
June 2012
Inhibition of protein glycation and advanced glycation end products by ascorbic acid
Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) formation is increased in diabetes mellitus, leading to microvascular and macrovascular complications. Recently, much attention has been focused on natural and synthetic inhibitors to delay the onset or progression of diabetes and its comorbidities. Ascorbic acid (AA) can react with proteins, including hemoglobin and possibly interfere with protein glycation...
June 2012
Gamma radiation sterilization of Bactrocera invadens (Diptera: Tephritidae) from southern Ghana
The African invader fly, Bactrocera invadens, an invasive pest in Africa since 2003, causes damage and poses a threat to the mango and horticultural industry. Its control is therefore needed. Sterilization of males using gamma radiation doses (25, 50 and 75 Gy) as a means of population control was investigated. Irradiation at the pupal stage (about 6 days after pupation) was found to be suitable. It was observed...
June 2012
Toxicity of three selected pesticides (Alachlor, Atrazine and Diuron) to the marine fish (turbot Psetta maxima)
The present study aimed to evaluate acute toxicity tests for three selected herbicides: Alachlor, Atrazine and Diuron using turbot flatfish. Larvae were more sensitive than turbot embryos to all pesticides. Median lethal concentrations of the selected pesticides during a 48 h and 96 h exposure for turbot embryos and larvae were, respectively: alachlor, 2177 and 2233; diuron, 10076 and 7826 and atrazine, 11873 and 9957...
June 2012
Improvement of electrophoresis performance by spectral analysis
This paper describes a new design of standard agarose gel electrophoresis procedure for nucleic acids analysis. The electrophoresis was improved by using the real-time spectral analysis of the samples to increase its performance. A laser beam illuminated the analysed sample at wavelength with the highest absorption of gel components. Thus, DNA band is detected well before it may exits a gel plate. A modified horizontal...
June 2012
Study on flavour volatiles of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) green tea
The volatile components of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) tea produced by two different kinds of technological process separately namely: vacuum and water immersion were studied. It was shown by the sensory evaluation that the color of the soup and the extracted leaves of GABA tea were similar to that of the oolong tea, and the smell was similar to the aroma of cooked sweet red dates mixed with some of sour....
June 2012
Assessing the feeding values of leaves, seeds and seeds-removed pods of Moringa stenopetala using in vitro gas production technique
This study presents the feeding values of leaves, seeds and seeds-removed pods ofMoringa stenopetala for ruminants as evaluated by in vitro gas production technique. Feed samples were analyzed for proximate nutrients using official methods. Each feed samples (200 mg) were incubated in buffered rumen fluid for 96 h and fermentation characteristics were estimated using established in vitro gas...
June 2012
Phytochemical screening and antimicrobial activity of roots, stem-bark and leave extracts of Grewia mollis
The roots, stem-bark and leaves of Grewia mollis which is used as herbal remedies for the cure of diarrhea and dysentery by natives in northern part of Nigeria were studied. The ethanol and water extracts of roots, stem-bark and leaves of the plant were subjected to phytochemical screening and antimicrobial activity against Salmonella typhii, Escherichia coli, Streptococcus sp....
June 2012
Fine structure of Egyptian buffalo oocytes (Bubalus bubalis) during different in vitro maturation periods using transmission electron microscopy (TEM)
This study was carried out to illustrate the ultrastructure of Egyptian buffalo oocytes through in vitro maturation (IVM) period (24 h). Selected cumulus oocytes complexes (COCs) were divided into three groups in relation to the time of maturation (8, 16 and 24 h >). After different maturation intervals, the matured oocytes were examined by light and transmission electron microscope (TEM). Results showed...
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